Why Is It Important to Spend Our Time Studying Communication?

...

The third reason why we should study communication is that communication education is vital to society and to crossing cultural boundaries. Communication education is vital to the persistence of our society, to erasing cultural boundaries; it also allows the development of skills and sensitivities that shape our society social and political lives. For example journalists and politicians need to learn how to use their words properly and carefully in order to keep the peace and to succeed in their intended goals. Through communication instruction we develop the ability to speak which qualifies us to participate in society. Caring and kindness are important values of our culture and they are virtues that are foundations of a child’s moral development. In order to be able to participate in society, Children in primary school should be able to understand and discern good from bad behaviour and develop habits of conduct that are consistent with what they perceive as good develop concern, regard and a sense of responsibility of the welfare and rights of others and express this concern in acts of caring and kindness. They need to experience negative emotional reactions including shame, guilt outrage, fear and contempt for breaking moral rules. It is important to understand nonverbal communication in order to enhance personal and work relationships of language interpreters and increasing their effectiveness in meeting the needs of customers, the aura of body language, and cultural variation in the use of gestures, the stages of an encounter, interpreting gesture clusters and in gaining connection through mirroring, anchoring and strategy replication. Du-badcock(2006) explains that in the 21st century, with the growth of communication, communicators will be directly exposed to an array of cultural differences, information exchange possibilities and communication dynamics, which will require them to adjust to the competency levels of their communication partners. Teachers of communication must teach students how to cope with and communicate in these increasingly complex and diverse global communities. Finally communication education serves to enhance our understanding from multiple cultures.

The fourth and last point is that communication education is vital to career success and the business enterprise. Communication education is fundamental to career success and the entire business enterprise. People entering the work force are assisted by communication skills in that they have to write application letters and attend oral and written interviews where issues of nonverbal communication are taken into consideration. Also employers identify communication as one of the basic competences every graduate should have, asserting that the ability to communicate is of value for obtaining employment and maintaining successful job performance. Communication skills essential in the work place include basic oral and writing skills and the ability to communicate in work groups and teams with persons of diverse background and when engaged in problem solving and conflict management. Cline (2005) reports the results of a poll of 330 employers.96% of executives rated communication and interpersonal skills as the most valuable employee trait. One executive interviewed states that attitude and aptitude are equally valuable in the office; however communication skills still rank at the tip of her list. In addition to providing graduates with valuable, employment enhancing skills such as team work, critical thinking, analysis and problem solving skills, and strong writing and speaking skills that can be used in their professional lives, Communication studies also give graduates important personal insights into the world that can broaden their horizons and concepts of the world, allowing them to see the ‘big picture’. This aspect is personally rewarding and enriching and is also highly regarded by employers as this exposure to diverse ideas gives graduates a broad knowledge base that prepares them for evolving challenges in global cultural, political and business environments that are subject to ongoing changes. Their ability to think widely and critically about issues and see relationships makes graduates invaluable to employers, and opens up employment possibilities. While most graduates will look to finding employment in business sectors where their skills are needed to communicate with a client base, market products and services, and manage issues and crises, graduates also find work in communication based industries such as public relations, online communication, broadcasting, politics and film. Many of these industries are growing, some very quickly, and need skilled professionals. So not only can Communication graduates find work within fields traditionally thought of as ‘communication’, such as publicity, journalism or public relations, their skills are in demand in all business sectors including healthcare, financial services, information technology, community organisations, manufacturing, mining and government relations to list a few and far from being a ‘luxury’ qualification, Communication is an exciting, dynamic and fast evolving area of study and work and a degree in Communication gives students a wide range of employment options both in terms of the type of work they undertake and the industry sectors in which they can be employed.

In conclusion, the communication discipline is essential component and fundamental to the educational enterprise from preschool to adult education. The field is important in the area of high education. Reported studies have clearly indicated that communication education develop the whole person, improves the work of education advances the interest of society, bridges cultural differences and advances careers and businesses, as such it is essential that communication should be taught by specialists trained in the discipline and departments that are dedicated the study of communication in order to achieve the objectives stipulated above.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barker, O. (2006), Technology leaves teens speechless: Text-messaging is wiping out the art of conversation.U.S.A.Today.

Bruskin & Goldring. (1993), America's number 1 fear: Public speaking. In Bruskin & Goldring (Eds.) ,Bruskin & Goldring Report

Cline, S. (2005). Soft skills make the difference in the work place. Colorado Springs Business Journal,1.

Downing, J. E. (2005). Augmentative and Alternative: Communication. Inclusive education for high school students with severe intellectual Disabilities: Supporting communication.

Du-Babcock, B. (2006), Teaching business communication: Past, present,